Skip to main content
← Back to Dental Radiology

Dental Radiology Glossary

105 terms total — 24 showing — Last updated 15 Sep 2026

Stafne Bone Cavity

Advanced Technical IVT

A developmental bone concavity on the lingual surface of the posterior mandible caused by a submandibular salivary gland inclusion, presenting radiographically as a well-defined, corticated, unilocular radiolucency below the mandibular canal.

Showing 73–96 of 105

PCD

Intermediate Technical

Abbreviation for Periapical Cemental Dysplasia, a benign fibro-osseous jaw lesion occurring at tooth apices in vital tee...

Abbreviation Full entry →

Periapical Abscess

Intermediate Technical IVT

A localised collection of pus at the apex of a tooth root, resulting from bacterial infection of the pulp, visible on ra...

Technical Term Full entry →

Periapical Cemental Dysplasia

Advanced Technical IVT

A benign fibro-osseous lesion of the jaw appearing at tooth apices in distinct radiographic stages, unrelated to pulpal...

Technical Term Full entry →

Periapical Index

Professional Technical IVT

A five-point radiographic scoring system (PAI) used to classify the health or degree of periapical pathology observed at...

PAI
Technical Term Full entry →

Periapical Radiograph

Intermediate Technical IVT

An intraoral X-ray image that captures the entire tooth — crown, root, and surrounding bone — including the apex and per...

Technical Term Full entry →

Pericoronitis

Intermediate Technical IVT

Inflammation of the soft tissue overlying a partially erupted tooth, most commonly a mandibular third molar, which prese...

Technical Term Full entry →

Periodontal Ligament Space

Intermediate Technical IVT

The thin radiolucent line visible on dental radiographs between the root surface and the surrounding alveolar bone, repr...

Technical Term Full entry →

Photostimulable Phosphor Plate

Intermediate Technical IVT

A flexible, film-like indirect digital radiographic receptor that stores a latent X-ray image and releases it as visible...

Technical Term Full entry →

PID

Basic Technical

Abbreviation for Position-Indicating Device, the tube-like attachment on a dental X-ray unit used to direct the beam and...

Abbreviation Full entry →

Position-Indicating Device

Intermediate Technical IVT

A cylindrical or rectangular tube attached to the X-ray tube head that directs and collimates the X-ray beam toward the...

Technical Term Full entry →

PSP

Basic Technical

Abbreviation for Photostimulable Phosphor Plate, an indirect digital dental radiographic receptor.

Abbreviation Full entry →

Pulp Canal Obliteration

Advanced Technical IVT

Progressive narrowing or complete obliteration of the root canal space by the deposition of secondary or tertiary dentin...

Technical Term Full entry →

Pulp Stone

Intermediate Technical IVT

A calcified mass within the pulp chamber or root canal, visible on dental radiographs as a discrete radiopaque body with...

Technical Term Full entry →

Radicular Cyst

Advanced Technical IVT

The most common odontogenic cyst, arising from the epithelial cell rests of Malassez at the apex of a non-vital tooth, a...

Technical Term Full entry →

Radiographic Contrast

Intermediate Technical IVT

The degree of difference in density or grey-scale value between adjacent areas on a radiographic image, which determines...

Technical Term Full entry →

Radiolucency

Intermediate Technical IVT

An area on a radiographic image that appears darker than surrounding structures, indicating lower X-ray attenuation typi...

Technical Term Full entry →

Radiopacity

Intermediate Technical IVT

An area on a radiographic image that appears lighter or whiter than surrounding structures, indicating higher X-ray atte...

Technical Term Full entry →

Radiovisiography

Intermediate Technical IVT

A digital intraoral radiographic system in which a small sensor replaces conventional film and captures images electroni...

Technical Term Full entry →

Receptor

Basic Technical IVT

In dental radiology, the image-capturing device—whether film, photostimulable phosphor plate, or solid-state sensor—used...

Technical Term Full entry →

Rectangular Collimation

Intermediate Technical IVT

A beam-limiting technique in intraoral radiography in which the X-ray beam is shaped to a rectangular cross-section matc...

Technical Term Full entry →

Residual Cyst

Advanced Technical IVT

A radicular cyst that persists within the jaw following extraction of the causative non-vital tooth, presenting as a wel...

Technical Term Full entry →

Resorption (Root)

Intermediate Technical IVT

The pathological or physiological loss of root dentine and cementum, visible radiographically as shortening, blunting, o...

Technical Term Full entry →

Scatter Radiation

Intermediate Technical IVT

Secondary radiation produced when primary X-ray photons interact with matter and are deflected from their original path,...

Technical Term Full entry →

Scout View

Intermediate Technical IVT

A low-dose, preliminary radiographic image taken prior to a full CBCT scan to confirm patient positioning and anatomical...

Technical Term Full entry →
Showing 73–96 of 105

Editors from these organisations have used our services since 1998

Reuters BBC Oxford University Press Penguin Random House Springer Microsoft Suncor Energy United Nations Fisher Investments IBM The Home Depot KODAK CHEVRON